Shareable Rosemary Bread

Rosemary bread is super simple and easy to make! It will complement many meals deliciously. This recipe makes two loaves so make one for you and one for a friend!

It may be hard to believe, but I was a very picky eater when I was little. I still ate what was put in front of me, but if given the choice I gravitated towards my safety foods. One of my biggest aversions was to plain, untoasted, sliced white bread that came from a bag. As a child, this type of bread was all we knew. Parents thought it was a safe food that all children would love, but young me could not stand it. I had to toast and butter it in order to eat it. I feared that all bread I would encounter in the future would be tasteless.

How did it come to be, that a picky eater would one day become the food writer typing before you? The answer is the introduction of crusty bread. Once my family started feeding me crusty bread, like baguettes and artisan loaves, my pickiness began to fade away. I went on to discover the wonder of bakeries and admire the beauty of bread made at home. Bread baking is an art. I would eventually learn the craft for myself, and fall even deeper in love.

This recipe was created because of an excess of rosemary. When my rosemary plant grew tall and plentiful I knew I had to figure out more recipes in order to cook it. After using the herb for roasts and chops I thought it was a good time to try it out in a crusty bread. With a little experimentation I created a bread that had a beautiful crust on the outside, was soft and fluffy on the inside, and tasted wonderful dipped in a little olive oil. I hope you and your friends love it as much as I did! Please enjoy!

Rosemary Bread Recipe

Yields 2 loaves

8-10 servings

Specialty Tools: Pastry brush and stand mixer or bread machine.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Bake Time: 20 to 25 minutes

Inactive Time: 2 hours and 45 minutes

Ingredients

Dough

1 cup hot water, 80-90 F

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

2 cups bread flour

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced

2 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Topping

Olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly cracked black pepper

Fresh rosemary

Directions

By Hand

Combine yeast, water, olive oil, and salt into a large bowl and stir well to proof. Wait for 5 minutes, add half the flour and incorporate. Add the remaining flour and rosemary, then combine thoroughly.

Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead dough for 3-5 minutes.

Lightly grease a large bowl and place dough inside. Cover the bowl with a towel and put in a warm area until the dough has doubled in size, about two hours.

With a Stand Mixer

Place yeast, water, olive oil, and salt into the bowl of the stand mixer. Proof for 5 minutes. Add the flour and rosemary. Attach the dough hook, run the mixer on low to medium speed. Run the mixer until the dough forms a ball.

Lightly grease a large bowl and place dough inside. Cover the bowl with a towel and put in a warm area until the dough has doubled in size, about two hours.

With a Bread Machine

Place the ingredients in this order into bread machine; water, olive oil, salt, flour, rosemary, and yeast. Select the dough setting.

After creating the dough:

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Divide the dough into 2 equal sized pieces.

Shape each piece of dough into circle/dome shape.

Set aside on the cookie sheet and cover with a towel. Place in the warmest part of the kitchen.

Let dough rise again for 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 F

Sprinkle rosemary on the dough. Make sure to press it in so it sticks.

Brush dough with olive oil, using a pastry brush.

Sprinkle salt and pepper onto the surface.

Bake in oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown.

Slice and serve hot or warm.

Dip chunks of this bread in olive oil and serve an appetizer or side for delectable Italian meals like alfredo pasta, carbonara, or pasta all’Amatriciana.

This bread will also pair nicely with savory dishes like roast lamb, rack of lamb, and beef stew.

This bread tastes best with fresh rosemary, but dried rosemary works in this recipe as well. Substitute the fresh rosemary with 1 teaspoon dried rosemary.

If you only want to make one loaf at a time, prepare the dough as described above and freeze half for later!

DID YOU MAKE THIS DISH?

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